I'm sure chlorine bleach works well, the issue is that it is extremely damaging to the environment. Bleach would be okay for a pump out but not ok for dumping while at sea.

Chlorine bleach will whiten organic stains and it will disinfect, but it does not "clean". For cleaning, you need some sort of soap or detergent.

Think about this - When you do the laundry and wash the white items, do you use just chlorine bleach or do you use detergent and add bleach?

The only legitimate use for chlorine bleach on a boat (unless you have a washer and dryer on the boat) is to chlorinate potable water that has not already been chlorinated (such as from a private well).

I use clorine bleach to whiten stains in gel coat/white vinyl, do hand laundry, sanitize surfaces, disinfect the bilge when sewage gets in there from changing a pump or hose, get mildew/mold stains out, whiten porcelain cookware, it puts a real shine in glassware,.....I have more just tired of typing...

Oh yeah...I just read someplace that you can addi to water tanks if you suspect the water source may not be up to snuff...

That is the bottom line on cleaning a holding tank. Bleach kills germs but it doesn't clean anything.

Sodium or potassium hydroxide lye, Drano, caustic soda ... whatever label it has is what works. It dissolves the crud then converts the oils and grease to soap that can be washed away with rinse water. It dilutes in discharge water and degrades quickly, just like bleach, and is environmentally safe.

When your drain clogs at home you don't put bleach down it and hope it clears the grease and hair do you?